Routine traffic check yields drug bust

FANCY GAP – A routine check of a tractor-trailer parked in a convenience store parking lot netted three arrests and more than 300 pounds of marijuana in Carroll County Tuesday.
According to Carroll County Sheriff Warren Manning, the drugs have a street value in excess of $750,000.
Manning said three deputies responded to Kangaroo Express in the Fancy Gap section of the county to check on a tractor-trailer truck that was parked on the lot. He noted that the truck was of interest because it was similar to one being driven by a suspect in several convenience store burglaries along Interstates 77 and 81.
After speaking with the driver of the truck, the officers checked inside the trailer and found two men.
At that point a Virginia State Police narcotics dog was brought to the scene to inspect the vehicle. Manning said the dog &#34;alerted&#34; to the tractor and trailer so a search warrant was obtained and the truck was unloaded.
According to the sheriff, the dog then &#34;alerted&#34; on panels of aluminum with about four inches of Styrofoam insulation between them. When the panels were cut open, 28 packages of marijuana ranging in weight from 5.5 to 14.5 pounds were found.
The driver, Mario Martinez, and the other two men, Ramon Sanchez Santago and Ramro Esparza Ibanez were taken into custody and are being held without bond at New River Valley Regional Jail.
Martinez, 30, of Whittier, Calif. is charged with possession with intent to distribute more than five pounds of marijuana and with transporting illegal narcotics into the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Santago, 42, of Oregon and Ibanez, 30, (no address given) each are charged with possession with intent to distribute more than five pounds of marijuana and with breaking and entering a motor vehicle.

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Routine traffic check yields drug bust

FANCY GAP – A routine check of a tractor-trailer parked in a convenience store parking lot netted three arrests and more than 300 pounds of marijuana in Carroll County Tuesday.
According to Carroll County Sheriff Warren Manning, the drugs have a street value in excess of $750,000.
Manning said three deputies responded to Kangaroo Express in the Fancy Gap section of the county to check on a tractor-trailer truck that was parked on the lot. He noted that the truck was of interest because it was similar to one being driven by a suspect in several convenience store burglaries along Interstates 77 and 81.
After speaking with the driver of the truck, the officers checked inside the trailer and found two men.
At that point a Virginia State Police narcotics dog was brought to the scene to inspect the vehicle. Manning said the dog &#34;alerted&#34; to the tractor and trailer so a search warrant was obtained and the truck was unloaded.
According to the sheriff, the dog then &#34;alerted&#34; on panels of aluminum with about four inches of Styrofoam insulation between them. When the panels were cut open, 28 packages of marijuana ranging in weight from 5.5 to 14.5 pounds were found.
The driver, Mario Martinez, and the other two men, Ramon Sanchez Santago and Ramro Esparza Ibanez were taken into custody and are being held without bond at New River Valley Regional Jail.
Martinez, 30, of Whittier, Calif. is charged with possession with intent to distribute more than five pounds of marijuana and with transporting illegal narcotics into the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Santago, 42, of Oregon and Ibanez, 30, (no address given) each are charged with possession with intent to distribute more than five pounds of marijuana and with breaking and entering a motor vehicle.